PM West's Benitez sisters are double trouble for opponents

Jackie and Ramonia Benitez have played key roles in Pocono Mountain West's success this season.

ZACH STURNIOLO

Jackie and Ramonia Benitez have played key roles in Pocono Mountain West's success this season.

The Panthers won the Mountain Valley Conference Friday night and are 21-3 entering this week's District 11 Class AAAA tournament.

Much of the team's success stems from its chemistry, and having a dynamic duo of sisters lead the charge helps.

Ramonia, a senior, is 45 points shy of 1,000 for her career, and was recently named the conference's Most Valuable Player. Jackie, a sophomore, has scored almost 600 points in two seasons.

PM West coach Stacy Perryman, a former standout player at East Stroudsburg South and East Stroudsburg University, knows just how advantageous playing with sisters can be. Perryman played with her sisters Felicia and Chrissy in high school.

"Having played with sisters on a team, it's a quality that is beneficial to not only themselves, but the team," Perryman said. "They can read each other. They know what each other is thinking. They're one step ahead in that regard.

"They completely feed off of each other. There's an energy between them off the court and on the court. They truly are sisters through and through. On the court, they're able to understand each other's strengths, each other's weaknesses, and they feed off of it."

The sisters have been on the same team since Ramonia was in fourth grade and Jackie in second.

"We're able to read each other, and we know where each other is going to be sometimes," Jackie said. "Like, sometimes, I know once I get a rebound, I know she's fastbreaking or ready to look up, and she'll be there."

Though they are sisters, each Benitez brings their own style to the game.

"Mona is a passionate, dedicated, gritty kind of player," Perryman said, "so she brings the tougher, more let's-go-at-it attitude. Jackie's more of a finesse, confident, goes-with-the-flow type of player.

"Those two qualities completely complement each other."

Those qualities have led the girls and their team to an outstanding season to date.

Ramonia has averaged about 12 points and 6 rebounds per game, and she's had made 37 3-pointers.